Current and noise in a model of an alternating current scanning tunneling microscope molecule-metal junction

A 17 GHz molecular rectifier

Molecular electronics originally proposed that small molecules sandwiched between electrodes would accomplish electronic functions and enable ultimate scaling to be reached. However, so far, functional molecular devices have only been demonstrated at low frequency. Here, we demonstrate molecular diodes operating up to 17.8 GHz. Direct current and radio frequency (RF) properties were simultaneously measured on a large array of molecular junctions composed of gold nanocrystal electrodes, ferrocenyl undecanethiol molecules and the tip of an interferometric scanning microwave microscope. The present nanometre-scale molecular diodes offer a current density increase by several orders of magnitude compared with that of micrometre-scale molecular diodes, allowing RF operation. The measured S₁₁ parameters show a diode rectification ratio of 12 dB which is linked to the rectification behaviour of the direct current conductance. From the RF measurements, we extrapolate a cut-off frequency of 520 GHz. A comparison with the silicon RF-Schottky diodes, architecture suggests that the RF-molecular diodes are extremely attractive for scaling and high-frequency operation.

Molecular electronics holds promise to overcome scaling limits of conventional technologies, but is currently limited to low frequency operation. Here, Trasobares et al. show radio frequencies of up to 17.8 GHz in a molecular diode based on ferrocenyl undecanethiol self-assembled monolayers on gold nanodots.

Simple theory of current fluctuations and noise in bridge-mediated nano-junctions

We develop a simplified, model theory of noise caused by highly damped oscillating conformational fluctuations of a chain molecule mediating a nano-junction. Considering the most 'primitive' approximation of direct tunneling of electrons and barrier coupling with collective coordinates that describe internal conformations of the chain molecule, we derive approximate analytical formulas for the temporary current correlation function, noise power, and Fano factor. We analyze the role of different cumulative parameters of the model that affect the noise, as well as the effect of the temperature and of the number of groups in the chain. We present this analysis in expectation of experiments on this type of noise and in an attempt to trigger such experiments.